Evacuations were underway after a strong earthquake of magnitude 7.4 struck offshore in the southern Philippines on Friday (October 10), its seismology agency said, Reuters reports.
People in Koronadal City, General Santos City, Cagayan De Oro City and Tacloban were seen moving out of buildings, some standing on roadsides while awaiting further instructions.
Agency Phivolcs warned of aftershocks from the quake, which struck in the morning in waters off Manay town in Davao Oriental in the Mindanao region. At least one person was killed, civil defence official Raffy Alejandro said on Facebook.
Phivolcs revised down the magnitude from an initial reading of 7.6 to 7.4, and put the depth of the quake at 23 km (14.3 miles).
The quake was among the strongest in recent years to hit the Philippines, which sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" and experiences more than 800 quakes each year.
